Skating on the Planet

[river]

Today was one of those days where I just couldn't do ANYTHING right on the ice. And of course it was the first time I could go during the day after the kids went back to school so I was really looking forward to it!

 

Three turn? Let's just either drag the toepick the whole time or stick my foot down as soon as we're backwards. Spin? Falling off the back of the blade is fun too! Just good old-fashioned forward stroking? TOEPICK. Waltz jump? Of course, that's the one time I couldn't find my toepicks today.

 

At least my spirals are starting to look like actual spirals with my foot near hip height? That's the one saving grace of today's practice session.

[utsukushii3A]

Hello, I'm new and was directed over here from another thread. I've been skating on and off since I was 10, took a 10+ year break for various reasons, and just started again seriously in the middle of last year with hopes of competing. After a lifetime of ill-fitting recreational skates, I now finally have properly sized skates appropriate for my level, so hopefully I'll finally get past Freeskate 1 after waaaay too long, and get a good hydroblade! (Right now, I have more of an aerobutt...)

 

My never-going-to-happen-but-what-if-it-does reach-goal is a triple Axel or a quad.  My minimum goal is all the turns and spin positions, a really good hydroblade, and all the double jumps except double Axel.

 

Here's to all of us reaching our goals and then some!

[yuzuangel]

On 1/8/2019 at 7:23 PM, utsukushii3A said:

Hello, I'm new and was directed over here from another thread. I've been skating on and off since I was 10, took a 10+ year break for various reasons, and just started again seriously in the middle of last year with hopes of competing. After a lifetime of ill-fitting recreational skates, I now finally have properly sized skates appropriate for my level, so hopefully I'll finally get past Freeskate 1 after waaaay too long, and get a good hydroblade! (Right now, I have more of an aerobutt...)

 

My never-going-to-happen-but-what-if-it-does reach-goal is a triple Axel or a quad.  My minimum goal is all the turns and spin positions, a really good hydroblade, and all the double jumps except double Axel.

 

Here's to all of us reaching our goals and then some!

 

Nice goals!! My coach today was like "When a skater learns to control their hips they can do doubles and triples" and I was like "and quads?" and he was like "and maybe quintuples" lmao But I also have the same goals of most spin positions (although Biellmann looks hard and I don't love the look of that position anyway, so i'd be REALLY happy with nice layback, which is my favorite spin). And doubles. Except that i'm skeptical about spins (they're just so hard) that i'm actually more optimistic about doubles (even though i'm not close but i just don't feel like i've reached as much of a wall with jumps, probably because i don't practice them as much). 

 

I had a rare productive skating day today. There was a moment where I felt like I really "understood" backspin, and it involved pushing my hips back a bit because i tend to push them forward (even on land). One of my problems is rocking to the heel and this sorta helped, because when I push my hips forward my upper body leans backwards. Of course that moment of epiphany disappeared pretty fast but it happened! 

 

I've also been doing more edge work which I usually neglect, and I'm pretty sure now that my right blade is not aligned properly. I'm MUCH better on my left outside edge than my right outside edge which makes no sense because my right foot is my dominant foot. So I did some glides and I definitely have a tendency to be on the right inside edge even when doing outside edge exercises (I have to like really flex my foot to glide on a straight line, but I'm so used to it I don't notice anymore). So I guess I need to get that blade adjusted? 

 

I've also been trying to hook my entries into my normal spins in order to get more control in the spin and...it actually worked a couple of times? Like I really try to bend my knees at the last millisecond to get an exaggerated hook at the end of the entry (it feels a lot more hooked than it actually is) to help me get centered. This is the rink with the incredibly soft ice that I can't spin on so any amount of un-centered-ness throws me off.

 

Also I had the realization today that my spins aren't inconsistent, they're just really pretty consistent whenever the ice tends to be hard and basically nonexistent when the ice is soft. So like, it's not because I can do it on some days and just magically lose it on others. Mentally this is really helpful...like it's (almost) not my fault, I just need to get better/be better on soft ice, that's all 

 

And finally, I think I did like more than 2-3 correct toe loops in a row for the first time in my life. I used to do toe axels, which is a pretty common problem (with adults) where I miss the last part of the jump where the right foot passes the left foot when the left toe pick is in the ice. (I rotate CCW.) Toe axels are when you start rotating, either on the ice (pre-rotation) or in the air while your right foot is still in front of your left. My coach told me the jump is like a pivot, and I think I finally "understand" that feeling too. And for once I actually did many correct (small, but at least correct?) toe loops in a row instead of only doing them once or twice by accident.  

 

And this was all in the span of an hour. So yeah, that was my productive skating day 

[Murieleirum]

Soooo I filmed some stuff today. Good stuff I'm confident about (SE and IB?) and Salchows (not confident lol I hate them fuck them). 

 

 

 

If you have suggestions and see something I should fix in my jumps and Salchows please share. Things I know: my exits are terrible (gotta practice those backwards balances). 

[utsukushii3A]

Desperately working on my turnout before my lesson later. I'm super-super-flexible naturally, but I destroyed a lot of that carrying a school bookbag too heavy for someone twice my weight. I tend to waffle for a long time because of how painful stretching is, but once I suck it up and really push myself, I make huge improvements almost immediately. It's very much a mixed blessing... or just a regular blessing but a very painful one.

 

I love how many of us are trying to learn Ina Bauers and spread eagles. It's pretty clear just from this thread who this is a fan forum for. 

[yuzuangel]

4 hours ago, Murieleirum said:

Soooo I filmed some stuff today. Good stuff I'm confident about (SE and IB?) and Salchows (not confident lol I hate them fuck them). 

 

 

 

If you have suggestions and see something I should fix in my jumps and Salchows please share. Things I know: my exits are terrible (gotta practice those backwards balances). 

Your ina bauer and spread eagle look pretty!^^ now i want to work on mine, too

 

Here's mine from the last time I filmed it: 

 

[Murieleirum]

15 minutes ago, yuzuangel said:

Your ina bauer and spread eagle look pretty!^^ now i want to work on mine, too

 

thanks!! I definitely only trained on one side so I should work hard as well! 

[yuzuangel]

3 hours ago, Murieleirum said:

 

thanks!! I definitely only trained on one side so I should work hard as well! 

I'm gonna try to layback more the next time I try it  btw for yours, it looks great but you should try to not curve/spiral so much while you're in the IB. keep your edge strong or even try to do it on a line and try to follow the line as much as possible  

[Murieleirum]

12 hours ago, yuzuangel said:

I'm gonna try to layback more the next time I try it  btw for yours, it looks great but you should try to not curve/spiral so much while you're in the IB. keep your edge strong or even try to do it on a line and try to follow the line as much as possible  

 

Thanks! Yes, especially with the layback I think it should also help if we're going on a straight line. Btw it's outside edge on the front bent leg and outside edge on the back leg, right? I will practice it on a line next time c: 

[utsukushii3A]

Lesson was much kuyashii, but my inside spread eagle is much better. I probably shouldn't be too hard on myself given that that was only my second time on my new skates (and only my second time not on ancient, ill-fitting, unpadded recreational skates that bruised my very, very bony ankles), but... the kuyashisa burns. Hopefully my practice later will be better, especially given that I looked up a few things about proper technique online and got a really good tip from, of all people, my mother, who can barely stand up on skates.

 

EDIT 1/11: Wow. For the first time ever, I didn't think about my skates once. I just skated, no distraction or discomfort. A lot of things really clicked. I think I did some quite good cross rolls, and my Salchow is at least now an actual jump, albeit an underrotated one, rather that just a tentative hop. 

(I think listening to The Final Time Traveler on my Bluetooth headphones helped, too, even though they're cheap ones that Yuzu would probably cringe at. ;))

[shanshani]

Me reading about all you people jumping meanwhile I just started learning backwards crossovers going to try them unassisted as soon as my knee stops being a pain. I feel like ever since I started either one knee or the other is in a constant state of minor injury, ugh. I spent a lot of time practice right outside edges and now I have patella inflammation in my right knee I feel like something might be wrong with my right outside edge. When I'm on it my knee feels like it's under a lot of outward force and I have to concentrate to stay on the edge, whereas this doesn't happen with my left outside edge. Granted, I've practiced LFO a lot more just because my rink is tiny and traffic is counterclockwise, so maybe it's just a matter of needing more practice.

 

Relatedly, my forward CCW crossovers are pretty good now, but my CW ones are kind of garbage, though they did improve somewhat today. Also working on turning my one-foot forward wiggle into an actual slalom, which is haaard. But also loads of fun.

 

Some huge random dude in rental skates almost ran me over today even though I was completely stationary I feel like there should be a speed limit for people who don't know how to skate, especially if they are big. Usually rec skaters are fine because they don't move very quickly and they stick to the sides, but there were definitely one or two young men being reckless at my rink today. At least if a little kid skates quickly and doesn't watch where they're going, the potential for damage is usually not that high since they're so small. But if the tall, fully grown dude does it, yikes.

[yuzuangel]

2 hours ago, shanshani said:

I spent a lot of time practice right outside edges and now I have patella inflammation in my right knee I feel like something might be wrong with my right outside edge. When I'm on it my knee feels like it's under a lot of outward force and I have to concentrate to stay on the edge, whereas this doesn't happen with my left outside edge.

hey me too! to literally everything you mentioned including patella inflammation. I dunno if you read but I wrote something similar:

 

On 1/10/2019 at 11:28 AM, yuzuangel said:

I've also been doing more edge work which I usually neglect, and I'm pretty sure now that my right blade is not aligned properly. I'm MUCH better on my left outside edge than my right outside edge which makes no sense because my right foot is my dominant foot. So I did some glides and I definitely have a tendency to be on the right inside edge even when doing outside edge exercises (I have to like really flex my foot to glide on a straight line, but I'm so used to it I don't notice anymore). So I guess I need to get that blade adjusted? 

 

Maybe you need to get your blade adjusted too?

[guitarist]

6 minutes ago, yuzuangel said:

hey me too! to literally everything you mentioned including patella inflammation. I dunno if you read but I wrote something similar:

 

 

Maybe you need to get your blade adjusted too?

Yeah, @shanshani I'd recommend this, or talk to coaches, skate techs, and/or a podiatrist about insoles. I have issues with overpronation, especially on my right foot (easily noticeable because both on skates and sneakers, the tongue always shifts to one side after a few min of walking/skating). It got much better after a coach adjusted it! 

 

(Also, yuzuangel, if you're in the city, ask one of the coaches, Ken, to do it. And if you need your blades sharpened, he's your guy. Probably the best in the city)

[shanshani]

Thanks @yuzuangel and @guitarist.

Quote

I've also been doing more edge work which I usually neglect, and I'm pretty sure now that my right blade is not aligned properly. I'm MUCH better on my left outside edge than my right outside edge which makes no sense because my right foot is my dominant foot. So I did some glides and I definitely have a tendency to be on the right inside edge even when doing outside edge exercises (I have to like really flex my foot to glide on a straight line, but I'm so used to it I don't notice anymore). So I guess I need to get that blade adjusted? 

Wow yup that sounds exactly like me. Right foot dominant, but left foot much better outside edge. I feel like I have to put quite a bit of weight on the outside just to skate flat.

 

I did talk to my coach but he didn't mention anything about adjusting the blade, he only suggested knee strengthening exercises. I haven't had many lessons with him though so maybe I haven't made clear the extent of the issue. Tbh the pro shops around where I live don't seem very good, when I got fitted they all suggested sizes that were definitely too big, so I'm not sure how easy it would actually be to get the blade adjusted properly. I'll ask again next time and also look into insoles. My poor knees need it lol.

[guitarist]

10 hours ago, shanshani said:

Thanks @yuzuangel and @guitarist.

Wow yup that sounds exactly like me. Right foot dominant, but left foot much better outside edge. I feel like I have to put quite a bit of weight on the outside just to skate flat.

 

I did talk to my coach but he didn't mention anything about adjusting the blade, he only suggested knee strengthening exercises. I haven't had many lessons with him though so maybe I haven't made clear the extent of the issue. Tbh the pro shops around where I live don't seem very good, when I got fitted they all suggested sizes that were definitely too big, so I'm not sure how easy it would actually be to get the blade adjusted properly. I'll ask again next time and also look into insoles. My poor knees need it lol.

I think some coaches are hesitant to adjust blades until they're sure it's an issue and that it's the last resort. Strength does play into it, as does technique. For example, I read on another forum that dropping your hip (free leg) can also pull you to the inside edge. If the skate techs aren't that knowledgeable, talk to a podiatrist or orthopedist, if you can find one who's worked with figure skaters. They might be able to do the insoles.